Vehicle-tire.



M. BEHRER.

VEHICLE TIRE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 16, 1907.

@2833 1 PaitentdkJuly 20, 1909.

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MARTIN BEHRER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

VEHICLE-TIRE Application filed August 16, 1907.- Serial No. 388,771.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARTIN BEHRER, a

citizen of the United States, 'residi11g,at.. Queens, 1n the borough of Queens, city of New York, county of Queens, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Vehicle-Tires, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof. Y

My invention relates to vehicle tires and more particularly to that class thereof known as inner'tube pneumatic tires.

The main object of the invention is to provide a tire of this character wherein the inner tube will be protected by a metallic sheathing in a manner to prevent nails, glass or other sharp substances orarticles passing through the outer shoe or tread and cutting said inner tube, while being flexible to an estent to avbid a loss in the resiliency of the tire.

A further object is to provide a tire employing a protecting metallic sheathing for the inner tube wherein the metallic parts of the sheathing will be so protected as. not to come into contact with I the inner tube, thus avoiding all likelihood of the metallic parts cutting the material of said inner tube through that movement of parts relative to each other incidental to the use of the. tire.

A still further object is to provide a tire of this character, wherein the protecting sheathing is capable of automatic elongation to adapt itself to that variance in the circumference of the tread due to a loss of the elasticity of the material therein through the wear or the aging thereof.

A further object is to provide a tire wherein a continuous metallic barrier will be interposed between the inner tube and the tread, comprised of a pluralit of protecting plates each of which is capab e of depression inde pendently of every other, thus afiording a yieldin body which will give at any point.

A sti 1 further object is to provide a tire of this character having an inner facing for the shoe carrying a plurality of inde-, pendent plates spaced apart one from the other and staggered to present in the aggregate a continuous metallic barrier or sheathing back of the tread, the ends of which facing are united by a slip joint to prevent the overlapping of the adjoinin ends of said'facing, or the'end of any p ate being forced into the inner tube by the depression Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. July 20, 1909.

of the tire at the point of jointure of the ends of the sheathing strip or strips.

A still further object is to provide a metallic sheathing for the tread of vehicle tires of this character which, while presenting a continuous metallic. barrier will have the desired flexihility and will be capable of being inexpensively produced.

The invention consists in such novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and described and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawings: Figure l is a longitudinal section of a part of a vehicle tire embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 22 Fig' 1, on a slightly larger scale; Fig. 3 is a detail View of one of the plates removed from the flexible strip, Fig. at is a detail view showing the slip joint between the adjoining ends of the sheathing strip, and Fig. 5 is an enlarged detailed sectional View illustrating the slip joint between the adjoining ends of the sheathing strip.

Like letters refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the, accompanying drawings, (1 indicates a folly of ordinary construction, I) a shoe also of ordinary construction, adapted to be attached thereto in the usual and well known manner, and c an inner tube of the usual and well known type. In tires of this type, as now-"generally made, the shoe 6 is made of rubber and canvas, and the inner tube 0 of rubber alone. Various anti-skldding applr ances are in common use and metal is sometimes embedded in the shoe for this purpose. This well known constructionand arrangement of tire in use is subject to frequent puncture, the weight placed thereon, .the

rapid rotation, and the weak s ts of the this trouble, but it is impracticable to mold solids inthe rubber, as commonly suggested, and a continuous body made up of overlapped hinged sections has also proven im- I am aware that various expracticable. In most instances, also, it has been the effort to make the guard an integral part of the shoe or of the inner tube,

thus necessitating the manufacture of a special tire throughout.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a flexible strip carrying thereon a plurality of steel or other metallic plates, each plate being entirely independent of every other.- Phese plates I arrange in parallel rows on diti'erent planes, and the plates on one plane are staggered with relation to those on the other with overlapping ends, thus presenting a continuous metallic barrier made up of a plurality of units each of which is capable of independent depression with the rotation of the tire. Preferably the flexible strip re-v ferred to comprises two strips of flexible tough material (Z, 1'', preferably leather, upon the upper face of each of which is attached by any desired means as rivets a plurality of steel plates f g. The length of the strips 0 will vary with the diameter of the tire with which they are to be used, and the ends of the said strips will be joined by slip oints broken relative to each other. means which will be hereinafter described, being provided to prevent. said ends from overlapping or projecting into the inner tube.

The plates f g are curved transversely to conform to the contour of the shoe 6 and the upper surface of each plate is chamfered longitudinally to avoid sharp edges which might tend to cut or wear into said shoe, or be forced through the leather strip into the inner tube. The plates f are spaced apart equally about the strip d and the plates g similarly positioned on the strip 6 below the spaces between the plates 7, an arrangement which forms a supple joint between each of the adjacent plates and a non-puncturable protecting plate therefor, The strips when so equipped with plates, and set as described are secured together in any desired manner, as by stitching or the use of leather cement, rivets, etc; with the plates on the outer face of each, thus causing the strip (l to cover the 1 plates g, and the strip 0 to protect the inner tube therefrom. To avoid any possibility of the securing rivets, for the plates, when such are used, penetrating the inner tube, I preferably provide the inner face of the strip 6 with a canvas facing h, coincident therewith.

In order to permit that longitudinal play of the sheathing necessary to have it accommodate itself to the action of the shoe 5, I reduce and overlap ,the ends of the strips d 6 many desired manner. In the drawings, I have shown each strip at e as having beveled overlapping ends which is a convenient and satisfactory manner of forming such a joint.

Owing to a ossibility of one end of the provide means holding the abutting ends of the sheathing strip in alinenient. This means preferably comprises a rod or plate i carried by one plate 9 adjacent to one endof the strip 0, and passing through a keeper j carried by another plate 9 adjacent to the other end of said strip. This construction permits movement of the two plates 5/ above referred to, but limits their depression independently to such an extent as to prevent a plate from cutting into the inner tube, or a substantial overlapping of the abutting ends of the strip.

The operation of the tire heretofore described is substantially as follows: The sheathing strip having been placed in the shoe betweenit and the inner tube, the tire is inflated, in the usual manner, the said sheathing acting as a lining for the said shoe, and being held firmly in place by the inflation of the inner tube. If such inflation causes the shoe to give, or if said shoe gives while the tire is in use to an extent to increase its circumference, the adjoining ends of the strips (l e will slide upon each other sutliciently to elongate said sheathing strip to the same extent. As weight is placed upon the tire atany point, the tread and inner tube flatten adjacent to that point, and the sheathing strip by reason of the supple joint formed by the flexible strips (l 6 between the plates f g, gives correspondingly, the length of said plates permitting one or more to give to conform to the configuration assumed by the depressed portion of the tire. If the point under depression be at the point of the ends of the sheathing strip, there would be. a tendency of the ends to separate and be forced end on inwardly to an extent to permit the inner tube a entering between them, or the cutting of said tube by the said ends or the plates thereon which are adjacent thereto. The rod or plate 2' however, will cause both ends to rnove'in unison, thus avoiding such an action.

If the tire should pickup a nail, piece of glass or other similar article, it will be observed that the plates f 9 would receive the impact thereof after it had passed through the shoe, and prevent its entering the inner tube. Incidentally the strip between the plates 7 would of itself offer resistance to the passage of the article therethrough.

The ends of the plates f 9 being overlapped affords ample rotection case a nail should enter the oot at an angle, in addition to permitting the plates to be spaced sufficiently apartto permit that movement necessary to permit the sheathing strip to conform to the movement of the shoe as described.-

The leather or other tough material of the strips (1 6 serves to prevent the plates f 9 cutting into the inner tube, or graduall working loose, which would occur were t eyembedded in rubber. Thevshoe is suflic ently said plates tl,. eon. In the drawings the various parts are not tough to withstand the Wearing action of the shown-t0 scale, such drawings, owing to the difficulties of properly showing the inven tion being merely an approximate illustration of the invention.

It is not my intention to claim a metallic sheathing for inner tube tires'broadly, but I believe that itis, new to provide a plurality ofsegmental metallic plates carried by a flexible strip on different planes, those on one I Having described the invention, what I claim and desire to hsveprotected by Letters 1. ln' a' vehicle tire, the combination of a: shoe, an nner'expansible tube, and a sheatlr iralit v of plates secured to said sh6 t li'i1'ig=y,o1i different planes, the plates on oi iejplauo overlapping those on the other, e

plate or rod carried by a plateEadjacerit to,

one end of said sheet-hm and a keeper for to the other end of said stri ends are held in substantial a ineinent.

2. In a vehicle tire, a sheathing adapted to be secured to a tire, coinprising a plurality of strips of flexible leather, a plurality of segmental plates attached to the outer face of each said strip, said strips being so ositioned relative to each as to bring the p ates on one strip below the spaces between the plates on the other strip,'with the ends of the plates on one strip overlapping those on the other,'a keeper carried by the plate adjacent to one end of said strips,- and a rigid plate or rod carried by the plate adjacent to the other end of said strips, whereby a slip joint is owned and the ends of the strip 'are held in substantial alinenient; In witness whereof, I have hereunto affixed my signature this 14th day of August, 1907, in the presence-of two witnesses.

MARTIN BEHRER.

Witnesses:

F. T. lVE'N'rwon'rH,

P. V. \VENING. 

